Embezzlement

News about Embezzlement, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 2, 2015

L Dennis Kozlowski, former chief executive convicted of looting nearly $100 million from Tyco International, has emerged into far more modest life after serving six-and-a-half year sentence and probation; Kozlowski, who became ultimate symbol of corporate greed in era that included scandals at Enron and WorldCom, describes his personal transformation and more humble pleasures that have replaced his once high-flying lifestyle. MORE

Dec. 6, 2014

Yolanda Gonzalez, former executive director of nonprofit group Nos Quedamos who was arrested in 2013 on charges that she stole nearly $900,000 from the organization, pleads guilty to grand larceny and criminal tax fraud; she faces up to seven and half years in prison. MORE

Nov. 21, 2014

Korean-American aid worker Peter Hahn, who has lived in China on border with North Korea for more than a decade, is detained by Chinese authorities on suspicion of embezzlement and possession of fraudulent receipts. MORE

Nov. 21, 2014

German court rules that Thomas Middelhoff, former chief executive of German media company Bertelsmann, must remain in jail while he appeals his conviction on charges that he embezzled from a subsequent employer Arcandor. MORE

Nov. 19, 2014

Karen Alameddine, former controller of New York-based nonprofit Hereditary Disease Foundation, has been charged with embezzling more than $1.8 million of organization's funds and using money for personal expenses. MORE

Nov. 18, 2014

Former Bertelsmann chief executive Thomas Middelhoff remains in jail while he appeals conviction on charges of tax evasion and embezzlement; German court says there is risk he might flee to avoid prison sentence. MORE

Nov. 15, 2014

German judge sentences German executive Thomas Middelhoff to three years in prison for embezzlement and tax evasion; Middelhoff is accused of taking private trips on chartered aircraft while serving as chief executive of German retailer Arcandor. MORE

Nov. 6, 2014

Yoo Dae-kyoon of South Korea is convicted of embezzling nearly $6.8 million from seven companies controlled by his family, including Cheonghaejin Marine Company, which operated Sewol ferry that sank in April, leaving more than 300 people dead; Yoo is sentenced to three years in prison. MORE

Oct. 24, 2014

Lawyers for New York State Sen John L Sampson seek dismissal of two of 10 counts against him in Federal District Court; agree that Sampson did embezzle funds from sales of foreclosed properties, but argue that five-year statute of limitations had expired before he was indicted. MORE

Jul. 3, 2014

Florida appellate court rules that government of Ecuador has the right to sue a pair of fugitive bankers, Roberto and William Isaias, in courts in the United States to recover $600 million that the government accuses them of having embezzled from Filanbanco. MORE

Jun. 27, 2014

Federal appeals court opens inquiry into whether spectators were improperly excluded from the 2012 trial of Bronx City Councilman Larry B Seabrook, who was convicted of misusing public money. MORE

May. 22, 2014

Criminal court in Egypt convicts former Pres Hosni Mubarak of embezzling millions of dollars of public money for his personal use in private homes and palaces; sentences Mubarak to three years in prison, on top of life sentence he is already serving in separate case; his sons Gamal and Alaa are each sentenced to four years for their roles in the embezzlement scheme. MORE

May. 14, 2014

Ira Kurman, Rabbi Samuel Hiller, Roy Hoffmann and Daniel Laniado, who are affiliated with Island Child Development Center in Far Rockaway, Queens, are accused of stealing $12.5 million in state and city funds; nonprofit group provides preschool special education services. MORE

May. 1, 2014

El Salvador's former Pres Francisco Flores will face embezzlement and other corruption charges related to what prosecutors say was the misappropriation of at least $5.3 million in loans from Taiwan during his tenure, from 1999 to 2004. MORE

Mar. 28, 2014

Roberto and William Isaias, Ecuadorean brothers whose relatives have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to American political campaigns, are being investigated to determine whether donations are tied to corruption; brothers, who live in South Florida, are wanted at home on charges of embezzling millions from bank they owned there. MORE

Mar. 11, 2014

Penchant of police in Hampton, Fla, to issue speeding tickets with impunity drew scrutiny that extended to all of its fiscal records; state attorney is among those participating in a criminal investigation after state audit uncovered reams of financial irregularities, shoddy record-keeping and missing funds; State Legislature is considering taking up a vote to dissolve the city and hand its management over to Bradford County. MORE

Jan. 10, 2014

French court rules that Mukhtar Ablyazov, Kazakh businessman accused of embezzling as much as $6 billion from Kazakh bank he once controlled, should be extradited to Ukraine or Russia to face fraud charges. MORE

Oct. 11, 2013

Pres Joyce Banda of Malawi dissolves her cabinet in wake of arrests of several officials on suspicion of stealing state funds; about 10 government officials have been arrested on graft charges. MORE

Oct. 10, 2013

Yolanda Gonzalez, former executive director of nonprofit group Nos Quedamos, is arrested, accused of stealing nearly $900,000 from South Bronx charity her mother co-founded; Gonzalez, who is said to have used money to pay for personal expenses, pleads not guilty to charges. MORE

Oct. 4, 2013

Robert Rizzo, former city administrator of Bell, Calif, accused of looting millions from city coffers, pleads no contest to all 69 charges against him; is expected to be sentenced to 10 to 12 years in prison. MORE

Aug. 1, 2013

Mukhtar Ablyazov, Kazakh businessman accused of embezzling $6 billion from BTA, bank he once controlled, is arrested near Cannes in southern France. MORE

Jul. 27, 2013

Greek shipping fleet owner Victor Restis is imprisoned pending trial on money laundering and embezzlement charges, making him one of only a few prominent businessmen to be jailed amid public anger over corruption. MORE

Jul. 3, 2013

CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun is arrested on charges of embezzlement and tax evasion amid wider crackdown on large corporations in South Korea; charges come as Parliament enacts series of laws aimed at protecting smaller businesses from corporations that have dominated nation's economy for decades. MORE

Jun. 27, 2013

Andres Granier, former governor of Mexico's Tabasco State, is arrested on charges of embezzling millions of dollars in public funds; case exemplifies growing willingness to expose official corruption in Mexico . MORE

Jun. 15, 2013

Former New York State Senator Pedro Espada Jr of the Bronx is sentenced to five years in prison for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from nonprofit Soundview Health Center; sentence comes after Espada makes last ditch effort to portray himself as wronged victim. MORE

Jun. 1, 2013

Prosecutors in Georgia are investing allegations that Pres Mikheil Saakashvili misused government funds, including more than $11,000 for Botox injections. MORE

May. 22, 2013

Georgian authorities charge Vano Merabishvilli, one of Pres Mikheil Saakashvili’s top political partners, with embezzlement and abuse of power, new government’s most decisive move yet against Saakashvili’s pro-Western team. MORE

May. 10, 2013

Providence Hogan, who pleaded guilty to embezzling $82,000 while she was treasurer of the Public School 29 Parent-Teacher Assn in Brooklyn, is taken back into custody after failing to make scheduled repayments; as part of a plea agreement, she returned over $50,000, but is still short about $17,700; Hogan could still face full sentence of two to six years if she does not make the full reimbursement by January 2014. MORE

May. 8, 2013

Spanish court drops subpoena for Princess Cristina, younger daughter of King Juan Carlos, to testify in an embezzlement case involving her husband Inaki Urdangarin. MORE

May. 7, 2013

Prosecutors say that New York State Sen John L Sampson, accused of stealing funds from the sale of foreclosed homes to finance a race for district attorney; Sampson surrenders to federal agents and is arraigned in Federal District Court in Brooklyn on charges that include embezzlement, obstruction of justice and making false statements to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. MORE

May. 7, 2013

Editorial applauds Federal Bureau of Investigation for arrest of New York State Sen John Sampson on embezzlement charges, latest success in its series of indictments against corrupt Albany politicians; holds while Gov Andrew Cuomo and other leaders talk about cleaning up Albany, FBI is doing the cleaning; proposes, foremost, public financing of elections as long-lasting deterrent to state's endemic political corruption. MORE

Apr. 17, 2013

Russian anticorruption blogger and prominent opposition leader Aleksei A Navalny is trying to etch lasting image in public imagination before his trial on embezzlement charges begins; fear has transformed political atmosphere as Pres Vladimir V Putin has made it clear that he is willing to use harsh means to extinguish street protests; many of Navalny's large donors have distanced themselves in recent months. MORE

Apr. 4, 2013

Spanish judge issues subpoena for Princess Cristina, daughter of King Juan Carlos, as part of widening investigation into whether her husband Inaki Urdangarin embezzled millions of euros from sports charity. MORE

Mar. 29, 2013

Trial of Russian opposition activist Aleksei A Navalny, who is accused of embezzling $500,000 from timber company, will begin between April 15 and 19. MORE

Mar. 28, 2013

Jim Greer, former chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, is sentenced to one and a half years in prison for stealing $125,000 in party funds. MORE

Mar. 21, 2013

French police search Paris apartment of Christine Lagarde, managing director of International Monetary Fund, in connection with investigation into her handling of embezzlement scandal when she was French finance minister. MORE

Mar. 21, 2013

Five former officials from Bell, Calif, including former mayor Oscar Hernandez, are convicted of multiple counts of misappropriating public money in scheme to pay themselves inflated salaries of up to $100,000. MORE

Mar. 21, 2013

John F Haggerty Jr, former political consultant who was convicted in 2011 of stealing campaign funds from New York City Mayor Michael R Bloomberg and had been free on bail pending outcome of appeal, has exhausted his options and is set to go to jail. MORE

Mar. 19, 2013

Diego Torres, onetime marketing guru, has become effectively a prisoner in his own home since he challenged Spanish royal family by revealing its private e-mails as part of his legal defense in corruption investigation; Torres and Inaki Urdangarin, duke of Palma and son-in-law of King Juan Carlos I of Spain, are accused of exploiting connection to reap more than $7.8 million in regional government contracts. MORE

Mar. 14, 2013

Cy Twombly Foundation, organization that handles legacy and estate of one of 20th century's most important painters, has been roiled by accusations in lawsuit that one of the four people who run it took more than $300,000 in unauthorized fees for investment services. MORE

Feb. 28, 2013

Elba Esther Gordillo, powerful teachers' union leader in Mexico, is arrested on charges of embezzling $200 million from her union for personal use; prosecutors say her financial subterfuge was an act of organized crime; Gordillo's downfall amounts to bold statement by country's new government that could open way to weakening the grip of the 1.5 million member teachers' union. MORE

Feb. 28, 2013

Vassilis Papageorgopoulos, former mayor of Salonika, Greece, and two of his top aides are sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of embezzling almost 18 million euros, or $23.5 million, in public money; it is a rare conviction in case involving political corruption that has contributed to country's dysfunction and decline. MORE

Feb. 22, 2013

Inaki Urdangarin, Duke of Palma and son-in-law of Spain's King Juan Carlos I, is under investigation over allegations he embezzled millions of euros after leveraging his connections to gain no-bid contracts for his nonprofit sports foundation Instituto Noos; scandal has besieged palace, and leaves nation's aging monarch and his aides scrambling to quell crisis. MORE

Feb. 15, 2013

Rita Crundwell, former bookkeeper for Dixon, Ill, is sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison for embezzling more than $53 million from the community. MORE

Feb. 1, 2013

Chey Tae-won, head of South Korean conglomerate SK Group, is arrested in Seoul courtroom after being sentenced to four years in prison for embezzlement; represents shift in attitude toward white-collar crimes in country. MORE

Jan. 23, 2013

Timothy D Russell, former top aide to Gov Scott Walker of Wisconsin, is sentenced to two years in prison for stealing more than $20,000 from a nonprofit group that Walker had appointed him to lead. MORE

Jan. 18, 2013

Rafael Thomas of the Bronx, former bookkeeper at upscale Japanese restaurant Masa in Manhattan, is indicted for stealing nearly $100,000 in accounting scheme. MORE

Jan. 10, 2013

Roberto Gurgel, Brazi's prosecutor general, says that he will analyze testimony in which Marcos Valerio de Souza, businessman convicted in embezzlement and vote-buying scheme, tied former Pres Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to scandal. MORE